Caird Park site chosen for Dundee regional sports hub

Dundee’s Caird Park has been chosen as the location for a proposed multi-million pound Regional Performance Centre for Sport.

The decision means plans will now move forward through a working group led by the area's local authority, with the £10m project being financially backed by Dundee City Council and Sport Scotland, which will each contribute £5m towards the scheme.

Previous relationships between the two parties have resulted in the creation of the region’s Olympia swimming pool, as well as the Dick McTaggart regional gymnastics training centre.

A number of institutions and bodies are part of a team working on the progression of the project, including football clubs Dundee FC and Dundee United FC.

Others involved are the University of Dundee, Abertay University, Dundee & Angus College, NHS Tayside and Leisure & Culture Dundee.

The site for the development already hosts a golf course, an athletics stadium and a velodrome, with the new project being made available to both athletes and the community.

Dundee was chosen as the location for the regional sports hub after the city lost out to Edinburgh for the chance to play host to Scotland’s National Performance Centre for Sport.

“Our partnership group has been working hard on plans for a large scale sports facility in the city which can be open for both performance and community use,” said Dundee councillor Ken Guild.

“While Camperdown was the preferred location in our national bid, we feel that Caird Park, which already plays host to a range of sports, is much better suited to the regional model.

“I am delighted that both Dundee FC and Dundee United FC remain involved in the project. This process has reinforced a shared determination that sport can be used to enhance the lives of individuals and help sustain improvements across our communities.

“I look forward to the announcement of more developments as we work to deliver this centre for Dundee.”

The Dundee scheme is one of a number of projects being launched to support Scotland’s National Performance Centre, which is currently being constructed at Heriot-Watt University's campus in Edinburgh, with a completion date slated for 2016.